would ever expect to happen in a public place. ♪ >> they are the good guys. >> the dog looked like he was about to get swept away. >> and the bad. >> trying to slit my throat from behind, telling me she's going to kill me. >> men and women capable of courageous action. >> if we didn't get things going quickly, he was losing brain function. >> or dastardly deeds. >> they were carrying guns, big guns. >> from the valiant. >> i didn't know how many

thrusts it would take. he was a lot bigger guy than i was. >> to the violent. >> the first few blows were so painful. >> they have one thing in common, the camera's eye captures them all. "caught on camera: heroes and villains." >> another family of rafael ramos, one of the new york city police officers nafs killed, speaking right now. let's listen. [ speaking spanish ]

[ speaking spanish ] >> the family of rafael ramos, one of the new york city police officer s that was killed by the gunman ismaaiyl brinsley reacting to news, no doubt the sorrow and now the investigation that's also going. just heard from the new york chief of detectives within the last hour as they described their investigation and how far they have made it so far in that process. and the families now of the two officers having to look at planning what will be a very sad pair of events in the coming weeks. those will be the funerals for the two officers that were

killed, that were assassinated, as bill bratton, the police commissioner of new york city had described this incident from this weekend. as they are remembering, in this case, rafael ramos and the family discussing what's happening. let's listen into this. >> i would like to thank all those who shared their sympathy and sup por for beloved family member rafael ramos who will always be loved and missed by many. i hope and pray that we can reflect on this tragic loss of lives that have occurred so that we can move forward and find an amicable path to a peaceful co-existence. we would like to extend their condolences to the lu family also. thank you. >> spanish?

>> translate it? [ speaking spanish ] >> a family member expressing her thanks for those who have reached out to her family of officer rafael ramos, father of two young sons who were absolutely shocked, one can imagine, when they heard the news. and there are also condolences she expressed for the other police officer who was killed, who was newly married just two months ago. the second officer that was killed by ismaaiyl brinsley. let's listen in really fast. >> let's first thank juan and tony for bringing the community

together to stand today with the ramos family. i'm here to make it clear to the ramos family that their pain has been felt, not just in this community, but all the way down to the united states congress. this is a terrible, unthinkable tragedy. for the community, for the city, for the country, for the police department, but most importantly to the ramos family. by all accounts, officer ramos was a good man, a good father, a good husband, and a good police officer. he was there for the city of new york to protect and serve when we needed him. and that's why it's important for us to be there for the ramos family during this incredible

time of need. and so we're just hopeful that this tragedy will not be in vain. before we leave that, on viewsly we have to be respectful of this family, respectful of this tragedy, respectful of the lu family to make sure they're appropriately buried as the heroes that they are. and then figure out a way to come together as the resilient city that we are. >> thank you. i just want to first offer my condolences to the ramos family who also happen to be personal friends of my family.

what happened yesterday was a senseless and cowardly act by a person who traveled long distance to do this. and some random act and it must stop. we want everyone from the city of new york to really understand that and to the mayor and to mr. lynch. please show your leadership and set by example. that's the only think i can ask. to both families, our hearts go out to you. [ speaking spanish ] >> the state senator there expressing his condolences, also sharing with us that the ramos

family, rafael ramos, one of the officers that was killed yesterday by that gunman, the gunman ismaaiyl brinsley, that the ramos family is also close to his family. and that they have -- that they know each other in some form or tag. also congressman hakeem jefferies there speaking. let's listen in very quickly. >> i think it's safe to say, we all woke up with heavy hearts. if there's one thing we all know how to do as new yorkers is stand together in times of adversity. we will continue with thoughts and prayers for officer ramos and his young sons. while we're point finger, let's make sure that we stand together to make sure the family receives

the support they need. >> thank you, officer. >> any questions? >> can we get the name of the relationship to the woman who spoke? >> that's his aunt. >> and her name? >> lucy ramos. >> l-u-c-y. >> the one that spoke earlier? >> yes. >> [ inaudible ] the blood is on the mayor's hands, could you go back to that? >> i can imagine when lynch spoke he was very upset at the moment. i'm pretty sure that, you know, that once everything settles down a little bit, i'm pretty

sure he'll figure out his thoughts. and i know in my heart that's not the way pat lynch speaks, you know? but, you know, i support pat lynch. and i support the police department. >> we're going to be reaching out to pat lynch and offering up -- we're going to reach out to pat lynch and offer up an opportunity for him to come to express himself. i'm speaking with some of the several african-american radio stations. i think what needs to be said are some of the things the police department is frustrated with. the fact that they had to deal with a lot of different avenues of having to do mandated ticketing and summoning and stuff like that. i think that speaks to a lot of the frustration. things are not being said. i think he will create that opportunity to explain why he's acting in the manner he is. he's depending his members. these officers are placed in a position to constantly come after us. you have to keep understanding, new york is a corporation. there's a dollar amount for

everything that goes down. that being said, we're looked upon those keeping the city running. so giving us summons and having mandates on police officers is not the way to go. this creates the sentiment and gets people frustrated. that's why they get the frustration from the police officers because they're pushed to go after us. >> [ inaudible ]. >> [ inaudible ] dill beblaz owe showing his support for the nypd? >> what was that? i'm sorry.? >> can you speak more about the mayor having to support the nypd? >> he needs to play the role of the mayor. he needs both sides. you can't just be on one side. you need to support your police

officers as well. and this is the reason why, he didn't show support. he needs to support them. he needs to show a little more support to the officer. they're the ones out here. they get paid for a job, a lot of officers go beyond their job. to protect me and my family, my community, people, all of us here. >> this is a very difficult, painful moment, not only for the families but for the entire city of new york. my condolences to the family and to our heroes. we cannot condone this type of behavior, but we need to also understand that this guy who committed this murder was a

troubled man who shot his girlfriend and we don't know what other mental problems he was facing. but here we are celebrating holidays in new york city. this is not who we are. and we prayed for the city of new york, for our police officers, and for our communities. there have to be a lot of reflection and coming together as a community and as a city the way we have done it before after 9/11. [ speaking spanish ]

>> the statements being made here is calm and working together and community. congressman hakeem jeffreys also speaking moments before that. adam reese, who's been following the story since it broke yesterday is on the phone with us now. adam reese, msnbc. one of the notes that was struck here and listened to so far is the mayor as well as police union officials. and the issues that have come out in the last 24 hours about the statements of where is the mayor, as we heard just now.

and i am paraphrasing that was said by one of the speakers there. adam, can you fill us in on where that is? >> richard, one thing they're mentioning here is that the mayor needs to support police officers here in new york. the head of the police officers union pat lynch spoke out last night and said that the blood here is on the hands of the may mayor. and it goes all the way to the steps of city hall. so they are reaching out, both to him, pat lynch, the head of the police officer's union, but they're also saying that the mayor needs to come out and support his police officers. the aunt lucy ramos in an emotional little speech said he'll always be loved and missed by many year, and she wants

everybody to reflect on this tragic loss and to find a path for peaceful co-existence. she spoke for a short period. this press conference has been mostly community leaders, congresswoman and a couple city council members. but his aunt did speak and called for peace and a path to peaceful co-existence. richard? >> you know, adam, as we've been listening to the community members, supporters of the rafael ramos family, and it being a family that is close with elected officials there, state senator expressing that his family knew the ramos' family. >> it's a very, very tight knit community. this community in queens, it's a community, hispanic community, it's a community of police officers, and everybody knows everybody. they're sticking together and they're rallying behind both the ramos family and the community

of police officers here in new york city. >> do we know what sort of communication the family has had with either the commission ne or the new york police department since perhaps mayor bill de blasio as well? >> we know last night the mayor and the commissioner wept to the hospital where the officers passed away. they met with the families. we know officer ramos has two young boys. one not only had words to the mayor to indicate how upset he was from his father's passing and how could someone take the life of police officer? but that son also has posted similar comments on facebook, praising his dad, dad being his best friend and what a loss it's been for him, a 13-year-old young man to lose his father, a police officer in the line of du duty. >> now, as we heard from the

congresswoman velazquez, this is the holiday season, but it's not for these families at least today for the new york police department. and the governor andrew cuomo also saying today that flags would be on all state government buildings in new york city flown at half staff. this is a tough time for not only the new york police department but all eyes as they catch this story. there are police departments around the country that have faced as well tough times like this. it's 5:18 in the evening and they're out there expressing how much it's difficult for them. >> it's going to be a difficult christmas week for these families. a somber, sad week, not only for the families, for the new york

city police department, which will lay these two officers to rest presumably this week. and it will be interesting to see how the police department reacts, how the head of the police union reacts, pat lynch, and where the mayor stands in all of this. we know that commissioner bratton went back to the scene this afternoon. he made an effort, visited with resident, gathered at the memorial and was very impressed with the flowers and candles and outpouring of support. he was very appreciative of the community and their support and the fact that the community here where the police officers were working overtime in a marked car, that the community has come forward to support the officers and to express outrage at this unspeakable act. >> ehe also made some comments about what he saw, how he appreciated what he saw there. what did he see?

>> a growing memorial, flower, candles, to see where this took place, what exactly happened. it's really hard for a lot of people in the community to believe. i was there all day and they're just stunned. an outrageous, brazen act. this assassination, the police commissioner called this an assassination. it was an am burg bush. it was an attack on the uniforms of these police officers. and even in this community that sees a lot of crime, this particular act was hard to believe. >> msnbc's adam reese fill philling us in with the latest developments on what has been a tragedy. two new york city police officers killed saturday. now we're seeing the family of rafael ramos just moments ago coming out to thank supporters

as well as to communicate with those who support the family, that they would like to see calm and they would like to see the community working together. now this one day after the killing of both officer rafael ramos and officer wen jen lu just yesterday on a saturday. sh. do i need to have a certain amount? nope, now you can redeem your cashback for any amount, any time. that's great. yeah, you can use it for a statement credit or even get the cash. nice. i could use that extra cash for a last-minute gift... one less thing hanging over your head, right? tell me about it. (to guy.) gary, you got to go. who's gary? a mistake from last year coming back around again... too much egg nog! yes! laaaaa... at discover we treat you like you'd treat you. now redeem your cashback for any amount, any time. get it at discover.com.

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a frightened canine is caught in a surging torrent of water. >> the dog looked like he was about to get swept away. >> but will help come in time? january 22nd, 2010, los angeles, california, a city famous for its perfect weather has been inundated with several days of heavy rain. paramedic joe st. georges of the los angeles fire department and the rest of his ariel rescue team are standing by to field emergency calls at a helipad just west of the los angeles river. >> it's a man made tributary or

channel designed and built specifically to move massive amounts of water rapidly. on a normal sunny day, it's just another area. but certainly once the rains begin, it's a much different animal. >> soon after arriving at the helipad, pilot scott bowman and the team get an unusual emergency call. >> the dog was in the water. when they gave a location, i realized we could almost see where he was from sitting on top of the helipad. >> rescues from nearby walls and under the bridge are already under way. so far the germany shepherd mix was evading capture. >> a number were involved in the

rescue operation but they weren't able to get to the dog for a variety of reasons. we really were the only option. >> within minutes pilot bowman and the team are hovering above the river but they need to work fast. >> the incident commander was telling us they were getting heavy rains at their location, which is only a couple miles away, which means that water is going to be coming to us in fairly short order. >> that's not the only serious risk they are facing. >> the dangers of this mission in particular were the proximity to overhead wires. the dog was fairly close to a power station on the land. >> adding to their concern, the crew didn't know how long the dog can fight the raging currents and the helicopter's fierce winds. >> the dog looked like he was getting very tired. he started struggling a bit.

>> local news cruise capture these dramatic images as st. georges is lowered into the swiftly moving river. >> as i was getting to him, the water was moving, and i couldn't tell whether the dog was trying to get away from me or whether he was losing his footing and about to be taken down river. >> as st. georges approaches, the terrified dog tries in vein to scale the wall. he slips, falls into the river and nearly gets swept away before the paramedic lungs after him. but the panicked pooch fights to get away. >> once i made contact with the dog, he tried to defend himself. >> the dog attacks st. georges biting his arms and hands. >> the dog is wet. he's cold. it's incredibly loud and windy. these helicopters generator upwards of 100-mile-an-hour winds. it's not surprising the dog started fighting back. i couldn't get angry at the dog for doing what dogs do. >> with the canine's jaws clamped around one arm, st. georges makes a grab for his collar with the other. >> i had his body, so i had a good level of control. i was just making sure to get everything positioned well enough once we were hoisted out of the water i'd still be able to maintain control.

>> st. georges is able to secure the german shepherd mix by the collar and nods to bowman, the signal to begin the airlift. seconds later, they are high above the surging waters, little relief to the dog. >> once he was in the air, obviously this is an environment this animal has never been in 30 feet in the air. he actually starts trying to swim. that's the closest thing he can relate this experience to is back in the water. >> bowman quickly lowers st. georges and the dog onto a nearby bridge where they are immediately met by other rescue personnel. the traumatized canine is rushed to a local animal shelter where he's dubbed vernon, after the area of l.a. in which he was rescued. vernon escapes the ordeal

without injury. st. georges, however, is not so lucky. >> the dog crushed the bone in joe's thumb and took off a portion of it. >> bowman flies st. georges to the nearest hospital where he's treated and soon released. after thousands watched the rescue unfold on live television, media gathered to bring the people of the story of st. george's heroics. >> this looks a lot worse than it really is. >> we got letters from all over the world. i think people were surprised that we took the time and the effort and the manpower to effect a rescue on the dog. >> not all the reaction is positive. some question the risk and expense to save a single dog. for bowman, the reason is clear. >> if the dog is in the water and we don't go get the dog, somebody is going to go get the dog. probably more than one person. there's going to be people in the river. now we have to rescue the people plus the dog.

>> but there's another reason far more personal. >> i don't want to watch a dog die in the river when i have the capability to do something about it. there's no way any of us would sit there and watch that. >> even with all the media coverage of the dramatic rescue, it takes a week for vernon to be reunited with his owners. turns out his real name is spikey. they had no idea what happened to him after he got out of their backyard. st. georges and vernon are both recognized by animal advocacy group for saving spikey's life. it's an honor st. georges takes in stride. the humble paramedic insists he's no hero. it's all in a day's work. >> there are 3,000 firefighters within the city of los angeles. i don't think there's any one of them that would not have done what i did. i can really even say that for

almost any firefighter across the country, it's what we do. >> coming up. >> there's a brutal people that saw something and wanted it. >> two thugs launch a surprise attack, leaving this bartender facing his own last call. >> that's when i saw the knife. >> when "caught on camera, heroes and villains" continues. for the volkswagen sign-then-drive event. for practically just your signature, you could drive home for the holidays in a german-engineered volkswagen. like the sporty, advanced new jetta... and the 2015 motor trend car of the year all-new golf. if you're wishing for a new volkswagen this season... just about all you need is a finely tuned... pen. get zero due at signing, zero down, zero deposit, and zero first month's payment on select new volkswagen models.

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>> breaking news. minutes ago, the aunt of rafael ramos speaking at a news conference. she called for cooperation and healing. ramos and his partner were gunned down in brooklyn saturday. earlier, police released more about the gunman who killed hi, including that right before the shooting he told two bystanders, watch what i'm going to do before opening fire on the officers. we'll have more on this breaking story later. now back to "caught on camera."

two thieves ambush a bar owner at closing time. >> i was mugged. i was stabbed. i was hit over the head with a pool cue. >> the robbery goes awry when the bartender takes a stand and fights back. >> they thought i was going to give them all my money, but that's not what happened. >> january 15th, 2010, lakewood, colorado. it's just before 1:30 early friday morning, last call at the cordial lounge. security cameras roll as behind the bar, 32-year-old owner t.j. is closing up shop. >> i was cleaning glasses, putting things away.

it got to a point where i began counting and shuffling the money around in my drawer getting ready to close the restaurant down. >> t.j. waits on four remaining customers playing pool, patrons he's never seen before, two women and two men. as t.j. counts the money in the cash drawer, one of the women approached the bar. >> i thought she was going to ask for another round of drinks. >> but the woman is not thirsty. >> she grabbed me and sort of pulled me toward her. and to this day, it's the weirdest thing, but i thought she was going to try and give me a kiss. i thought she was coming onto me, to be honest. then i realized, of course, pretty quickly that she wasn't. she was attacking me. she was going for the drawer of money. >> she is not acting alone. >> another patron from the bar, a male, ends up assisting the female and starts to attack the

bartender. >> lakewood police detective matt vandiver investigated the case. >> the bartender attempts to get away from her with the cash register and it gets knocked to the ground. >> suddenly the tussle takes a more dangerous turn. >> that's when i saw the knife. she's trying to slit my throat from behind, telling me she's going to kill me or i'm going to die. >> the blade just misses t.j.'s neck but slices his left ear. the woman slashes at t.j. again, this time stabbing him in the abdomen. >> i knew i had been punctured. when your life is threatened and you're in that fight mode, you kind of don't think about it. you just think, i'm fighting for my life right now. >> with no other employees left in the bar, t.j.'s best chance for help is a hidden panic button under the counter. he purposefully maneuvers his attackers toward the center of the bar and is able to reach the silent alarm to alert police. >> when our dispatcher sees a panic alarm, our officers respond immediately to the scene. >> the phone immediately started ringing off the hook, so i knew the police were on the way. it was very reassuring. >> at that moment the bar owner turns the table on his attackers.

he now goes on the offensive fighting to keep the assailants there until police arrive. >> i wasn't going to let them leave the building. i just had this fire in my belly as a husband and father and business owner that i just had to do this. >> the friends of the two robbers, apparently unaware of the robbery plans come out from playing pool and realizes what's going on. for a moment it looks as if each try to stop the fight. they give up. instead of helping t.j., they flee the bar. the three-way throwdown rages on. at one point a tap handle is knocked into the on position. what comes next puts t.j. on the short list for bar owner of the year. >> i'm not sure exactly what the bartender was thinking but he took the time while fighting to turn the tap off and save the beer.

>> as the fighting continues, the female attackers is able to break free. >> she had taken a pool cue, lined up and came right down on the top of my hair, which is by far the most devastating blow i sustained, even more than being stabbed. it bled a lot. >> several minutes have passed since the fight began and t.j. is losing steam. >> i remember thinking i don't know if i can hang out this long. where are the cops. >> at 1:30 a.m., five minutes after t.j. hits the panic button, police arrive. arrested, 34-year-old pamela tolbert and her boyfriend alfonzo portugal, 38. she gets a 27-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to aggravated robbery and second degree assault. portugal pleads guilty to aggravated robbery and is sentenced to 12 years behind bars.

central to the case, the video recorded by security cameras installed by a previous owner after an earlier robbery. >> i think it would have been difficult to get a true understanding of what occurred or what the assailants had actually attempted to do with the bartender until we saw that footage and what occurred. >> the two customers who fled the scene are not charged. lucky for t.j. his stab wound is superficial. no stitches necessary. but the blow from the pool cue requires 13. >> i think t.j. is lucky to be alive after this. >> t.j. has no regrets about fighting back rainfall when things that are valuable to you are threatened, i think just about anybody would be amazed at what they can do to defend those things. >> for t.j., the assault is a life changing event. within weeks he sells the cordial lounge and quits the bar business all together.

he goes back to school, choosing a new career path as a grade school teacher. in another twist, t.j. has forgiven them for their brutal assault and may even seek to have their prison terms reduced. >> i probably will begin investigating actions i can take towards some sort of restorative justice or mediation with them and see if they can hopefully become good people and productive members of our society. >> coming up, time is running out for a customer choking on a quesadilla. >> the table next to me ran up and grabbed my arm and said, you've got to do something. you've got to do something. th. we have the speed. we have the technology. and we have the team. we made over 15 billion successful deliveries last year. 15 billion!

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>> when "caught on camera, heroes and villains" continues. a casual dinner out turns terrifying when this college student bites off more than he can chew. >> all of a sudden, you're not breathing, and you only have a matter of a minute or two to get that food out of your throat or you're done. >> but help is on the menu, thanks to a hero waiter. >> i didn't know how many thrusts it would take. once i got around him, he was a lot bigger guy than i was. >> it was the scariest moment of my life definitely. >> march 2nd, 2011, atlanta, georgia. it's early wednesday evening at verde taqueria. a very popular restaurant. >> a busy night. i had a number of tables in a row. >> a graduate student at nearby georgia state university has his

hands full. >> i was kind of in a busy state of mind trying to ring in their orders, keep everything flowing smoothly. >> seated at one of those tables, georgia tech undergrad paul hargut. >> we were just out for dinner and a few drinks. it was me and my wife, her two sisters and three or four of their friends. >> security cameras installed just two weeks before catch paul and the group sharing a relaxing evening. paul addition into a dish called the black and blue quesadilla, grilled steak with blue cheese, chihuahua cheese, caramelized onions. midway through the meal, he takes an especially big bite and

swallows only to feel a chunk of quesadilla lodge in his throat. paul immediately does what most of us would do, reaches for miss glass of water. >> tried to wash it down. it wasn't going down. i kept drinking water. >> but water only makes things worse. >> the water pushed it down further in there but it didn't go down into my stomach, it went down into my air tube. that completely blocked any air from coming in and all the water came back out. it looked like i was throwing up. i realized i couldn't breathe. it was pretty terrifying. >> paul's wife to his left thinks he's getting sick and hands him a napkin. >> i just brushed that off. i didn't need a napkin. i needed someone to give me the heimlich maneuver. that's when i stood up and tried to get help from people. that's when everybody starts

freaking out. >> a quick thinking patron alerts the waiter. >> a guy from the table next to theirs ran up to me and grabbed my arm and said, you've got to do something. you've got to do something. >> paul's wife tries slapping his back before his sister-in-law makes an attempt at the heimlich maneuver. >> she's only 5-foot, 100 pounds. i don't think she could get her arm around me. >> it's been 35 seconds since paul stopped breathing. >> this is a life or death moment. somebody is either going to save me or i'm going to die right here in front of all my friends. >> it doesn't take matt long to realize that somebody is him. >> once i saw the other woman at the table was unable to perform the heimlich, that's when i jumped in. >> not a moment too soon.

paul has now gone 45 seconds without air. >> i was starting to get a little dizzy right when he came over, probably was about to fall down to the ground. he grabbed me right in the nick of time. >> heimlich training is mandatory at the restaurant, so matt knows just what to do. >> he just came right up behind me, had his hand right under my sternum. >> i ran up, placed my fist below his rib cage. my thrusts were in and up and had to lift him off his feet. >> he lifted me a good foot and a half off the ground. >> matt gives several hard thrusts and then -- >> it pretty much flew right out of my mouth. >> matt's heimlich works, propelling the piece of food from paul's windpipe. >> i took a huge breath of air. i was really starved for some oxygen. that first breath was the biggest sigh of relief i've ever had in my whole life. >> i looked on the chair and saw it was a good sized piece of steak and cheese. i grabbed the napkin real quick and scooped it up. he had seen enough of the black and blue quesadilla for the night. >> paul is shaken, slowly makes his way back to the table. >> i couldn't thank him enough. he had saved my life. >> matt, the professional, jumps into waiter mode. >> assured the tables everything is okay, nothing had happened. >> yes, paul does finish the dish that nearly finished him,

that black and blue quesadilla. >> i was very cautious chewing my food. >> the next day, proud of matt's heroics posted the security video online and paul is stunned at what he sees. >> i didn't realize how close i was to dying. it really only felt like maybe 15 to 20 seconds. but after i watched the video, you know, it went on for about a full minute, and i didn't realize it had gone on that long. >> matt becomes a local hero, albeit a reluctant one. >> anybody should be able to step in and help anybody else like that. that's just part of what we should do being citizens in a community. and i don't think that necessarily makes you a hero in any type of way. >> what's up, man? >> back to verde. >> good to see you. >> good to see you. >> paul begs to differ. >> really, the only reason that i'm still here is because he took the reins and did what he

was trained to do and he saved my life. >> coming up, three armed thugs hold up a convenience store. but they don't count on the granny with the .38 caliber surprise. >> i had the gun ready, cocked and ready to pull the trigger. >> when "caught on camera, heroes and villains" continues. i'm the proud dad of three messy kids they get stains like you wouldn't believe. this tide ultra stain release and zap!cap helps me get out pretty much any stain

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three armed men storm a gas station convenience store but get more than they bargained for. >> they don't know what's behind closed doors. >> a gun-wielding grandma who sends them running for cover. >> i do know how to pull the trigger. >> june 26th, 2006, beach island, south carolina. a town with two speeds, slow and

slower. a local fixture, todd's convenience store -- >> it's a beautiful day! >> -- where mary todd has been working the front counter for more than 35 years. >> when my husband is not there, i like to be there. and if problems arise, i take care of it. >> on this lazy friday grandfather, the great grandmother twice over retreats to the store's back office to indulge her twin passions. >> i was crocheting and watching television, and that's a good thing to do. >> seven security cameras roll as two teenager cashiers work the registers up front while longtime employee michael wallace stocks the shelves. >> come to work at 2:00 in the afternoon. i was stacking some beer to put on the shelf. >> just another routine day. >> everything was real, real

smooth, going smooth! >> until just before 3:00, when three masked men rush in. >> they were dressed in a lot of clothes. they had things on their faces. >> lay down. lay down. lay down. >> and they were carrying guns, big guns! >> they wanted the guns to be seen. >> no. >> come here! come here! >> they wanted to hurt somebody. >> they were going to clean us out of all the money. >> the men immediately split up. one guards the door. another makes a beeline for the back of the store, while the third heads straight for wallace. >> he come up to me, told me to get on the floor. >> lay down. lay down. lay down. >> i'll be honest with you, i was scared. you don't want to make these people madder than they already are. you buck them, they will shoot you. >> but when the gunman looks away for an instant, wallace moves toward the front counter,

where the store's silent alarm is. >> that's when i start easing over to get behind the counter. he grabbed ahold of my shirt and hit me with the gun like a blunt force hit. that's when i went down. >> wallace is knocked out cold, but one of the cashiers has better luck reaching the alarm. >> come here! come here! >> the little girl on the cash register, we call her little red. going down on the floor, she hit the alarm button for the police to come. >> meanwhile, the gunman at the back of the store is trying to break down the door to mary's office. >> stop! >> i crooked my head around to look out that little window where the door was, and i saw a man running and hitting the door. by the time he hit it a second time, i reached for my gun. it was on top of my bible. >> mary's weapon of choice, a .38 special. >> i live by the bible and i

live by the gun. and i always keep my gun on my bible with a big rubber band around it. i took my gun off and i cocked the gun. because my husband always told me, mary, if you have to use this gun, cock it, it will go off a lot faster. >> the gunman after several tries gives up. robber number two, bigger and presumably stronger, takes over. >> i know i was in deep, deep trouble, really deep trouble. i was in deep trouble. >> at that moment, mary says help comes from an unexpected place. she hears the voice of her late son, ryan, who died of a heart attack at 42. >> that's my guardian angel. he said, "mama, take a step back and shoot the window out!" and i did. i took a step back, and i shot the window out. i pulled the trigger. >> the blast from mary's .38

caliber gun shatters the office window, tearing into the ceiling. shaken by mary's shot, the gunmen flee the store. >> when i come to, i heard them holler out, this is not going to happen today. let's go. and that's when they really took off. >> all three suspects are still at large but have steered clear of trying another robbery at the store. michael wallace remains impressed with mary's shooting skills. >> i would say she was pretty good. we give her the name annie oakley. >> but for mary todd, it's just another day at the office. >> i never did get nervous about it. i was doing my job. i always try to handle any situation in that store. i had protection, and i was willing to use it.

set them free! >> sitting protesters doused with pepper spray. >> i was really shocked and pretty angry about sort of how they handled that. >> a slithering snake on a windshield. >> that was totally unexpected. >> and two old-timers battling it out for old time's sake. >> that day was not a fun day. >> videos that make you want to do a double take. >> we weren't expecting that at all. >> stories so shocking -- >> oh, my god. i thought she literally lost her mind. >> okay, i got it.